Newsletter #8 September 23, THE BULLDOG Coast Guard Cutter ALEX HALEY News Fall 2014 Inport Recap

Transcription

1 Newsletter #8 September 23, 2014 THE BULLDOG Coast Guard Cutter ALEX HALEY News Fall 2014 Inport Recap

2 the Haunted haley On the eve of Halloween, ALEX HALEY crew members hosted HAUNTED HALEY, our annual haunted ship event to raise canned food for local shelters. Just like last year the event was a huge success! We raised over 600 canned goods and pet food for the Saint Francis Shelter, Kodiak Island Food Bank, and the Kodiak Humane Society. The canned goods weighed nearly 720 pounds! We thank our outstanding volunteers and the citizens of Kodiak for another great year and look forward to the next.

3 On Veteran s Day, the Kodiak High School Student Council invited members of ALEX HALEY to attend a celebration assembly for all past, present and future military members. Cmdr. Steve White, our Commanding Officer aboard ALEX HALEY, and IT1 Patrick Godfrey both gave outstanding speeches commemorating the holiday. A bench dedicated to all veteran s was revealed and will be placed in the new Kodiak High School upon opening. Cmdr. White thanked the student and staff coordinators of the event saying, I applaud Kodiak High School, your faculty, your student leaders and you as a group for taking the time to say thank you and for honoring our veterans.

4 ALEX HALEY played host this inport to Alisha Drabek, Gayla Pedersen and Susan Malutin of the Alutiiq Museum. Alicia and her team shared with us the history of the Alutiiq people and several artifacts and recreations from the Alutiiq way of life. Various animal skins, spruce tea, and even a taste test of seal enlightened the crew to the interesting people that we share the island of Kodiak with. Many thanks to the Alutiiq Museum and its mission to educate!

5 Women in Engineering In late October, ALEX HALEY kicked off this year s Women in Engineering event! The Women in Engineering program was started last year with ALEX HALEY and Kodiak High School and now has become an annual event with several other Coast Guard units participating. Our shipmates rose and exceeded the challenge of providing hands-on activities to accomplished Kodiak students. Working in groups, we completed an electric circuit; shared our knowledge of turbochargers and shipboard stability; rebuilt a valve; performed a test with helicopter fuel; and located hot potatoes with a thermal imager. We always look forward to participating in this great program!

6 A Taste of Home for the Holidays by PA2 Diana Honings The military is a nomadic lifestyle; never in one place for long. But no matter where you go, you ultimately make new friends; get adopted into a family of peers. The holidays are the roughest to get through when you re new to the military when you re far from the friends and family you ve been with your whole life. Most military units around the country, and a few out of the country, do something special for the holidays. In Kodiak, Alaska, one food service specialist aboard the Coast Guard Cutter Alex Haley shared his experiences as he prepared his first Thanksgivings Day meal for the crew. Petty Officer 3rd Class Keven Narvaez, a 24-year-old from Puerto Rico, joined the Coast Guard a little over a year ago and though he didn t get to spend this holiday with his family, he did get to spend it with his shipmates aboard the cutter. I have never made a full Thanksgiving meal on my own before, but I ve cooked pretty much every item on that menu multiple times, said Narvaez. It will be a great experience. Every year, the crew of the cutter hosts a Thanksgivings Day feast while at homeport for the crew members standing duty, their spouses and children. The feast traditionally features the following dishes: oven roasted turkey, homemade stuffing, savory turkey gravy, candied yams, homemade mashed potatoes and a green bean casserole as well as snacks throughout the day such as deviled eggs and spinach dip. Thanksgiving is my second favorite holiday, right behind Christmas, in terms of food, said Narvaez. It s definitely a morale boost for people who are not able to spend that day with their loved ones. We are a big family on the Alex Haley, and even though we cannot be home during this holiday, we make the most out of it. While the Thanksgiving Day holiday has passed, it s never too late to share a recipe that will be great for a Christmas dinner. Here, Narvaez generously shares his favorite holiday recipe with us. See more at: Ingredients: 5 pounds sweet potatoes (fresh) 3 cups brown sugar 2 cups miniature marshmallows 2 cups corn flakes cereal 1 cup heavy whipping cream 2 cups pecans or walnuts 1/2 pound butter (softened) 1 teaspoon cinnamon 1 teaspoon nutmeg 2 eggs Directions: - Preheat oven to 400 Degrees - Bake sweet potatoes until soft (for about an hour) - While sweet potatoes bake, place softened butter on mixing bowl with 1 cup of brown sugar and pecans. Mix on low speed for about a minute. Scrape sides of mixing bowl and add cereal, mixing it for about 30 seconds. - Once sweet potatoes are soft, remove from oven and allow them to cool down. Peel them and place on mixing bowl with the remaining brown sugar, nutmeg, cinnamon, eggs and heavy whipping cream. - Place on a greased half shallow or a regular casserole dish and sprinkle the cereal mix on diagonal rows about two inches apart. - Bake for 20 minutes at 350 degrees. - Remove dish from oven and add marshmallows on the empty diagonal rows. Bake for 10 minutes or until lightly brown. Recipe!